World Population PyramidsPopulation pyramids and indicators by country and year日本語

Germany vs Japan: population pyramids in 1956

1956Swap

GermanyJapan

1.5%1%0.5%0%0.5%1%1.5%0102030405060708090100MaleFemale

Each bar is the share of the total population at that single year of age (men left, women right), so countries of different sizes can be compared.

Germany and Japan compared

In 1956, Germany has a population of 70.5 million and Japan 92.9 million; Japan is about 1.3 times the size of Germany.

The share aged 65 and over is 10.4% in Germany and 5.3% in Japan, 5.1 points higher in Germany. The median age is 34.3 years in Germany and 23.9 years in Japan.

The total fertility rate is 2.21 in Germany and 2.21 in Japan, both above the replacement level of about 2.1. Life expectancy at birth is 68.6 years in Germany and 65.6 years in Japan.

By 2050, the population of Germany is projected to grow by 11.2% and that of Japan to grow by 13.0% compared with 1956.

GDP per person is $60K in Germany (2025) and $36K in Japan (2025).

Key figures (1956)

GermanyJapan
Population70.5 million92.9 million
Aged 0–1421.3%32.7%
Aged 15–6468.3%62.0%
Aged 65+10.4%5.3%
Median age34.3 yrs23.9 yrs
Old-age dependency15.28.6
Total fertility rate2.212.21
Life expectancy68.6 yrs65.6 yrs
Population growth+0.43%+0.90%
Net migration (per year)-42,525-152,385
GDP$5.05T (2025)$4.44T (2025)
GDP per person$60K (2025)$36K (2025)
Unemployment3.7% (2025)2.5% (2025)

Economic figures are the latest year published for each country.

Compare other years